In consideration of new housing prices, many households are constructing additions or otherwise remodeling their existing homes to add features which were unavailable or unaffordable at purchase, rather than purchasing newer homes. One feature which has become increasingly popular is the solarium or sunroom, an extension formed primarily of transparent panels for walls and ceiling.
In many cases, the owner(s) of the home or property prefers to perform the work himself/themselves, rather than incurring the expense of hiring a professional to do the work. While this may be feasible in the case of standard construction, specialized work such as glazing large panels for a solarium is generally beyond the average handyman. Thus, when labor costs are added to the cost of the materials, quite often such a solarium addition or the like is beyond the budget of the home or property owner.
Accordingly, the need arises for prefabricated glazed panels available for purchase by the home or property owner, which glazed panels provide for ease of assembly by means of interlocking construction. Such panels include a glass or other transparent sheet extending substantially across the entire dimensions of the panel, with a peripheral frame and joints providing for the interlocking of the panels for ease of assembly. Preferably, the transparent panels are double or triple paned glass for optimum thermal efficiency. At least the roof/ceiling panels should have no externally exposed muntins or other structural members, thereby precluding the trapping of moisture and debris in such areas.